Daily Freeman Life Editor Ivan Lajara talks about journalism, living in the Hudson Valley, language, the Web, cats and even politics. But he shouldn't.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Through the Google Glass (and journalism) - Part II

A recent accident on Washington and Hurley avenues in Kingston, N.Y. captured through Glass.

Google Glass is making us rethink the way we consume and produce news.

The promise.

Google Glass — the high-tech wearable augmented reality device— has the potential to reshape journalism for both consumers and producers.I should know. I’m a journalist.

So when Google opened its Glass “Explorer” program, in which a group of people would be selected to get a pair, I applied on Twitter using the hashtag “#ifIHadGlass,” sending a pitch about why I should be chosen to be one of the 8,000 experimental participants. Here's a recap of that:

So I obtained a pair (The current explorer edition was $1,500, so the company was kind enough to pay for it).

It was time to deliver.

The experience

I have now spent two and a half months with the device, both as a consumer and producer. And although it is still in very much in the early stages, I have come to the conclusion that Google Glass can disrupt the news industry once again.

From a journalist's perspective:Currently, Google Glass can help improve
journalism by enhancing live coverage, communication and engagement. Enhancing live coverage:It’s
much easier to take photos and videos with Glass. I can't stress this enough. It’s the equivalent of having
a phone ready to take a picture or video right in front of you at all times. You can easily cover fires, protests, floods,
conferences, fairs, you name it. The coverage benefits from having eyes on the
ground, and allowing your audience to be part of that experience.

Improving communications and engagement: You could be at an event while having
a video conference in which your intended audience could see what you are
covering. This could be to help reporters, or for the reporter at the scene to
give the newsroom a live sense of the scene. You can also make calls and send
and get priority emails to selected contacts.

The potential: I do have a longer list of things you can’t (yet) do
with Google Glass, though I’m pretty sure they will be developed. I’m my ideal
scenario, you could host a public live video stream of an event via Glass via
Hangouts on Air (there’s a way around it, but it ends up being easier to use a
phone instead), where you could theoretically video conference with news makers
or at news event and share that while having live participants. Tim Pool of Vice used his Android device to find a way to livestream with Glass:

"When there's a wall of police firing plastic bullets at you, and you're running through a wall of tear-gas, having your hands free to cover your face, while saying 'OK Glass, record a video', makes that recording process a lot… easier."

As far as apps go, the current news apps (CNN and New York Times) act like small
updates (though CNN has video updates, and that's a nice touch (except for that twerking girl on fire video update a while back. BAD CNN!). But I would like to see media organizations develop apps that provide news
and information that matter to one’s daily life: What’s the price of that house
I’m looking at right now and what are the crime stats in that very area?; How
expensive is that restaurant and what’s the story behind its building? What’s
that song I’m hearing and is the band playing nearby? (Glass latest update does have a Shazaam-like song recognition search).

The potential to improve journalism (and yes, money
guys, to monetize this) is there. Sure, Glass is just a tool, but it’s a tool
that changes the way we experience news. So the question is, will the news
industry be blind to Glass?PREVIOUSLY: Through the Google Glass (and journalism) Part I
A much tighter version of this post is scheduled to appear in the October issue of the Local News Association's newsletter.